The week in travel: Dec. 17, 2010

Folks, I am rejoicing, because my Christmas/Hanukkah shopping is DONE (ignore how long ago Hanukkah was). I now am devoting my time to other things I can panic about, like how I’m going to pack/ship all of these gifts to their intended destinations in time. While I go navigate the sixth circle of hell that is the U.S. postal service, I’ll leave you with these links to amuse you on this chilly Friday.

Oh, and if you’re wondering what, exactly, the blogging schedule will be in these coming weeks (because, really that’s what’s on your mind right now, right?) fear not: I will be around for a few posts next week, and then perhaps even a few after Christmas. I’m shooting for a crazy blogging goal for the year, which means I can’t simply lapse in an egg-nog induced coma.

In the meantime, enjoy …

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Perhaps it’s because it’s so damn chilly outside that I found this collection of photos by Álvaro Sánchez-Montañés so damn wonderful. He visited a ghost town in Namibia that had once been a thriving mining village. After many years, the surrounding Namib desert has started to reclaim the town and the buildings – creating a surreal scene: an indoor desert.

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Looking for ways to impress folks at your next holiday party? Just check out the random fact generator (via mentalfloss). You’ll be spouting so much useless information, people will bring you drinks and hors d’oeuvres just to get you to shut up.

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A dried-out Russian waterpark? An empty subway station in New York City? This collection of photos of abandoned buildings has me alternating between “Creepy” and “I want to go to there.”

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Sigh. I do this, too. All my best dance moves are wasted on my houseplant and my husband (and usually only the houseplant is paying attention).

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This is making me giggle. What? I like puns. I think they’re punny.

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Dear Rand: I know what I want for Christmas. Please take note.

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Leave it to Wired to highlight the cold, harsh reality of our consumer culture this holiday season – check out their Where the Workers Who Made Your iPhone Sleep at Night photo gallery.

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Really, what’s a holiday without amusing quotes taken straight from police scanners?

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Completely digging Built for the Sea‘s version of Baby It’s Cold Outside.

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Desktop images that make it look like your computer screen is transparent. My head might have just exploded.

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Everyone always talks about how awesome the Riverbottom Nightmare Band was, but personally, this was always one of my favorite parts of Emmett Otter’s Jug Band Christmas: